Weekend Wanderings: Project +1 Date Night & Escolta Block Party

February 20, 2017

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Photography by Beatrice Faicol & Phil De La Torre

If you were out on Saturday, your faith in humanity might have been restored—or you would have at least believed the world isn’t overrun by trolls like you imagined. There was Project +1, a group date night organized for residents of Bahay Kanlungan, a shelter for PLHIV (People Living with HIV). A breezy evening welcomed the group as they gathered across the second floor of Makati’s Commune, everyone mixing, mingling, and spilling out onto the café’s wrap-around balcony. The only guest unwelcome at this party was stigma as new friendships were made over dinner and dancing, no ignorance or misinformation to keep anyone from really connecting with one another. Perhaps an apt song for the event was Ariana’s “Break Free,” sung by Moses, a Bahay Kanlungan resident who belted it like he was liberating hispozstatus from society’s misconceptions.

Similarly, Old Manila has experienced its own breakthrough thanks to the Escolta Block Party. Spearheaded by the folks at First United Building, a revolution was underway as the party made its riotous return, getting everyone from backpackers to street kids to come together. Beyond a Future Market that brought all sorts of makers of cool shit together under one roof (Britney tote bags, plants, sausages), the asphalt served as a dance floor for throwback beats, while an inflatable sumo suit being passed around was the stand-out symbol for the block party’s welcoming atmosphere. As the young and the youthful caressed the curb in rapturous celebration, it felt like a return to the glory days of Malate and the creative class it once rallied together.

Saturday’s events proved that we’re all in the mood to break barriers, be it prejudices against a virus or the laptop screens keeping us from truly seeing each other. We only hope that Saturdays like these won’t be spaced so far apart.

SHOP

About Team

TEAM tackles how gay Filipino men relate their identity, from fuckups to fantasies, to where to go for music you can actually dance to. We may not have proper rights in our country but we’re claiming some authority by getting our words and ideas on page. And though we lack public places to convene, an open publication (and wide-open digital space) is a good place to start.